Use Video Walk-Throughs To Sell Your Mobile Home Faster

Technology is great. Today we are discussing the why and how-to of digitally outsourcing the showing of your mobile home property to non-prequalified and semi-interested potential renters, tenant-buyers, and buyers.

Saving Hours by Not Being on the Phone and at Appointments With Flakey Renters & Buyers

If you will be selling or renting less than three properties per year, this “too much wasted time dealing with flakey renters” issue may not even apply to you. In fact, you may feel very productive and social chatting with dozens of potential renters or tenant-buyers the few times per year you rent or sell a home. However, if you will be selling multiple properties every year, it may be beneficial to create a short 3 to 10-minute video concerning the ins and outs of the subject mobile home for sale or rent. This short video will be given to interested folks looking for a similar property in the area. A descriptive and thorough video of the home can greatly reduce the number of potential renters and buyers you meet with and walk through your nice, clean home.

In the article below, we outline and discuss some of the points to consider when creating a walk-through video to help sell your mobile home faster.

Preparing

Whether the home is currently being lived in or is vacant, ideally the home is clean and presentable. Try to have areas needing rehab viewable for the camera.

Filming

You are not the star of this video, the home is. Go through each room to notice improvements you have made, and comment on both positives and negatives throughout the mobile home. While recording the video, pretend you are taking just one person who you respect through a tour of the home. It is important to point out needed repairs, recent improvements, and anything else factual about the property on this video.

Pro Tips: If you are concerned about the video editing process, then aim to record your walk-through videos in one take. This means powering through mishaps and acknowledging mistakes when you make them on video. Remember that this video does not need to be high tech; however, it absolutely should be professional. You are not looking to make friends with this video. Try to keep negative opinions to yourself while recording.

Camera

Unless you have a designated digital video camera you are familiar with using, any smart phone video camera from the last three years may have a decent camera to record your videos. Experiment with filming both inside and outside, as well as in darker rooms when possible. Edit and upload your videos as described below and judge for yourself whether a viewer will be able to reasonably watch your videos with clarity.

Editing

Some smart phones come preloaded with video and picture editing software. For all other smart phones, it can be wise to download a basic video editing program or application. For as little video editing as possible, make sure to simply cut off the beginning and end dead-space before and after you start talking about the subject property.

Pro Tip: If you do not feel comfortable on video, then by all means simply remain behind the camera and talk as you would when showing a trusted friend around this property.

Uploading

Straight from your cell phone, you can connect to video hosting services such as Vimeo and Youtube. It may be wise to use a video hosting service that does not create a following of viewers. Screencast or Google Drive are popular services that allow you to send a web link of your video without the viewer seeing any of your other uploaded videos or commenting.

Advertising

Advertising can be the fun part, as you get to see the fruits of your labor pay off. There are many ways to get this video in front of interested renters and/or buyers. It is important to drive both off-line and online leads to your online walk-through video of the mobile home property. Many folks will be able to view your video straight from their smartphones.

One method to achieve this is to simply post a web link in your Craigslist ad or other online advertisement. You may also list the “www.” link on any informational flyers hanging in the vacant home’s front facing window.
Another way to accomplish this is to have all interested parties send an email to a specially designated email account. Make sure the “vacation” auto responder is activated and set to immediately send an email reply to any incoming messages. This reply email from you or your company should have instructions to view the walk-through video and the next steps for serious buyers or renters to get approved.

If the potential renters or buyers are interested and would like to see the property further, they may give you a call directly or show up at the property in person to view the neighborhood and request the lockbox code for the front door.

What to Do Next

If you are investing without partners or employees, then reselling or renting an investment property can be very hands-off up to a certain point. We can use technology to create walk-through videos, automated phone messages, automated email messages, automated email messages with instructions for renters to get approved with the park and to start your own approval process, etc. However, before long, it can be very wise to meet with your semi-approved potential renter or buyer face-to-face. If you will be having a long-term relationship with this person or family, make sure you like and trust them in a face-to-face meeting at the property.

In conclusion, technology is only a piece of the puzzle, not the entire picture. I’ve seen many real estate investors get distracted by utilizing the fanciest technology or phone apps to seemingly make their lives and businesses more streamlined. In many niches of real estate investing, money and value are created by talking directly with people, meeting new people, following up with people, and making offers regularly. Technology can be a useful tool however it should never replace the face-to-face contact and warmth between an investor and his/her buyer, seller, or renter.

Do you already use video in your investing business? How does it work? Any tips we missed?

Let me know with a comment!

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.